Bulgaria mulls nuclear reactor plan amid gas halt

Bulgaria's economy minister said Monday the country had the right to try to overcome a gas crisis by restarting nuclear reactors mothballed two years ago.

The aging two 440-megawatt reactors at the Kozlodui plant were shut down as part of a deal to allow Bulgaria to join the EU in 2007. Economy Minister Peter Dimitrov said a clause in the country's EU accession treaty allowed them to be restarted in the event of a crisis.

The minister said Bulgarian businesses are losing euro7 million ($9.2 million) a day because of a dispute between Russia and Ukraine that cut off Russian gas shipments to Europe for nearly two weeks. The country said previously it would speak with the EU before making a decision on restarting them.